Trips to Petco Park have always been an event for Mickey Moniak.
He attended the Padres’ first-ever game here at age 4, staying at the Omni San Diego Hotel and walking over the bridge to the stadium with his family.
As a La Costa Canyon High School star, Moniak played in the Perfect Game All-American Classic at Petco the summer before he was drafted No. 1 overall to the Philadelphia Phillies. He played his first game here as a big-leaguer in 2023, last September logged a two-homer game in front of friends and family and is expecting at least 40 people — that he knows of — to visit the stadium this week.
“It’s special,” the 27-year-old said Thursday night before starting in right field for the Colorado Rockies. “Been to countless games as a kid coming here, been to some Padres postseason games as a player just to come and support (the hometown team). This is home. I still live here, so always a lot of friends and family here. It’s always good coming here.”
Especially these days.
Moniak made his debut with the Phillies during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, but he collected just 105 plate appearances over parts of three seasons before he was traded to the Los Angeles Angels with another minor leaguer for Noah Syndergaard in August 2022.
Moniak established himself as a big-leaguer in 2023, pairing 14 homers and 45 RBIs with an .802 OPS over 85 games.
The injury issues that Moniak struggled with in Philadelphia — he broke his hand in his last at-bat of spring training while trying to make the team in 2022 — bit him again in 2024 as he dealt with “a little ankle stuff,” he said.
He hit .219/.266/.280 over 124 games that year, and was hitting .192 in spring training when the Angels released him last March.
Moniak was a free agent for all of 10 minutes before the Rockies called his agent.
Given an opportunity to play every day with Colorado, Moniak hit .270/.306/.518 with 24 homers and 68 RBIs in 2025, his most productive year yet.
A finger sprain suffered late in spring training forced Moniak to start this season on the injured list. He returned in time for the Rockies’ home opener, hit two homers on Sunday and added another on Tuesday.
Moniak was back at Petco on Thursday, hitting second and playing right field for the club that gave him a chance.
“All you need is opportunity and someone to believe in you,” Moniak said. “ … It just gives you the confidence to go out there and play your game. I’ve always had confidence in what I could do on a baseball field. As a player, sometimes you’ve got to create your own opportunity. But it just takes a sliver of getting that chance. I felt like last year I was able to get that chance and just run with it.”